vncpasswd

Create or change VNC password files

TLDR

Set VNC password for current user (interactive prompt)

$ vncpasswd

Set password to a specific file

$ vncpasswd [~/.vnc/passwd]

Create password from stdin using filter mode

$ echo "[password]" | vncpasswd -f > [~/.vnc/passwd]

Set both full-control and view-only passwords from stdin

$ printf "[password]\n[viewpassword]\n" | vncpasswd -f > [~/.vnc/passwd]

SYNOPSIS

vncpasswd [options] [passwd-file]

vncpasswd creates or changes VNC password files used by VNC servers for authentication. When run without arguments, it prompts for a password and stores it in ~/.vnc/passwd.Passwords must be at least 6 characters in interactive mode (the -f filter mode accepts any length). Only the first 8 characters are significant due to the DES-based encoding used. The stored password is obfuscated but not securely encrypted.The filter mode (-f) reads plain-text passwords from stdin and outputs encrypted versions to stdout, useful for scripted password file creation. Up to two passwords can be provided separated by newlines: the first for full-control and the second for view-only access.

PARAMETERS

-f

Filter mode: read plain-text password from stdin, write encrypted version to stdout. Short or empty passwords are silently accepted in this mode.

passwd-file

Path to the password file. Defaults to $XDGCONFIGHOME/tigervnc/passwd or ~/.vnc/passwd depending on VNC implementation.

SECURITY

Password files are set to owner read/write only (600). The obfuscation is weak; anyone with file access can recover the password. Network authentication uses challenge-response, protecting against network sniffing.

INSTALL

sudo dnf install tigervnc

sudo pacman -S tigervnc

sudo apk add tigervnc

sudo zypper install tigervnc

nix profile install nixpkgs#tigervnc

CAVEATS

Only first 8 characters matter. Password obfuscation is not secure encryption. File permissions are critical for security. Different VNC implementations may have slightly different vncpasswd tools.

HISTORY

vncpasswd originated with the original AT&T VNC (Virtual Network Computing) implementation. Various VNC implementations (TightVNC, TigerVNC, RealVNC) include their own versions with minor variations but compatible password file formats.